152 HATCH EXPERIMENT STATION. [Jan. 



regarded as a practical food for ordinary use, on account of 

 its high cost. The food cost for the eggs produced in this 

 experiment Avas at the rate of about 1^ cents for the Avheat 

 ration, and nearly 2.1 cents per egg for the rice ration. 



As the result of experiments in previous years, corn had 

 been found superior to wheat rations when animal meal was 

 used as the source of animal food, while with scraps the two 

 rations gave nearly equal numbers of eggs. In previous 

 experiments, with milk albumin as the source of animal 

 food, the egg production has usually been unsatisfactory 

 when wheat has been the principal grain. These facts had 

 led to the belief that possibly the amount of fat in the ration 

 played an important part in determining the egg yield ; and 

 the experiments of this year Avere planned with a view to 

 throwing light upon this point. In some particulars they 

 seem to confirm this theory. The production of eggs on 

 milk albumin, Avhich is very low in fat, has in previous 

 years been quite unsatisfactory. This year, with the addi- 

 tion of fat, more eggs have been produced. Further, in 

 other experiments the egg })roduction Avhcre corn is the 

 principal grain has much exceeded that Avhcre Avhcat is the 

 principal grain, Avhen animal meal is used as the source of 

 animal food. The results this year Avere very similar. On 

 the other hand, the ration lowest in fat of all, viz., that in- 

 cluding rice, has given many more eggs than the ration in- 

 cluding Avheat, which furnishes a far greater quantity of fat. 



A study of the rations of this year shows an apparent re- 

 lation between the (juantity of fiber in the food and the egg 

 production. The rations furnishing exceptionally large 

 amounts of fiber, derived })rinci[)ally from such grains as 

 oats and bjirley, have given very inferior yields of eggs. 



In conclusion, Ave are justified in saying that our experi- 

 ments do not lend su})})ort to the belief that the nutritive 

 ratios of rations fed to hens must necessarily be narrow to 

 produce a satisfactory product. We have obtained more 

 eggs in Avinter in all experiments this year on the combina- 

 tions of foods Avith the wider nutritive ratios, and in two out 

 of three ex])eriments the result Avas the same for the summer 

 period, I am still inclined to the belief that the amount of 



